Edward Gray (1629-1681)
}} Biography Edward Gray was a wealthy Landowner and merchant in Plymouth Colony. Immigrated to America in 1642 with his brother Thomas on the ship "Recovery' out of London. This ship was owned by his uncle Alexander Graie. To Plymouth in 1643. Plymouth records show Edward became a merchant, and among the wealthiest in Plymouth Colony. He was a key investor in lands south of Plymouth to Newport Harbor. He died at age 52, young for a time when 70 was not uncommon. He lived to see peace restored with the Indians, but not long enough to see the development of his lands in what is now Rhode Island. NOTES FOUND IN FIND A GRAVE SOURCE Gray Legend The Clark’s Kindred Genealogies (A.P. Clarke & the Vermont Historical Society, Gray Genealogy) speaks of a Gray family legend that “the two boys were shipped off to America by relatives who were scheming for the property that Edward and Thomas were to inherit.” Variations of this thought have been found in many sources. In the Cory Family History the story goes that “Edward and his brother Thomas were shipped to America (Plymouth Colony) as boys. There was a family dispute about inheritance. Apparently the oldest brother (unnamed) wanted the family fortune and didn’t share with the younger brothers when they came of age. So the oldest brother shipped Edward and Thomas to Plymouth as apprentices.” In Ancient Landmarks of Plymouth by Davis the story goes that “They were only boys, and were smuggled aboard the ship in which they made the voyage in order to get them out of the country, interested parties at home intriguing to get possession of certain property which rightly belonged to Edward and Thomas.” In A Patchwork History of Tiverton, Rhode Island we are told that “the two young brothers arrived in Plymouth Colony from Essex, England with instructions to establish a financial base in the New Colonies.” Gray Legend #2 Edward Gray came to Plymouth with a brother Thomas in 1643, at the age of fourteen years. Thomas died eleven years later in 1654. The boys reportedly were smuggled out of England by relatives who wanted the boy's inheritance. Edward was reportedly a decendant of Henry I King of France. Edward became a merchant doing business on Main Street between Leyden and Middle streets. In 1651 he married Mary, daughter of John Winslow (brother of Governor Edward Winslow). In 1665 Edward Gray married Dorothy Lettic who owned lands, also on Main Street in Plymouth, givine Gray control over both sides of Main Street. He was said to be the wealthiest man in Plymouth colony. He was deputy to the general court from Plymouth 1679 to 1680. Marriage and Family 1st Marriage: Mary Winslow In 1651 he married Mary Winslow, daughter of John and Mary (Chilton) Winslow. Their children were: Desire 1651, Mary 1653, Elizabeth 1657, Sarah 1659, and John 1661. 2nd Marriage: Dorothy Lettice After Mary's death in Plymouth in 1663, Edward married in 1665 Dorothy Lettice. Their children were: Edward II 1666, Susanna 1668, Rebecca 1670, Thomas 1669 (see site #36257503), Hannah1673, Anna 1671, Lydia 1677, and Samuel 1682 (see record# 20495342). Dorothy died in Little Compton, Rhode Island in 1726. Vital Records Plymouth Gravestone This is the oldest known burial from a stone that can still be read in Burial Hill. * Location : Plymouth Burial Hill at Plymouth, Massachusetts * Inscription : "Here Lyeth ye Body of EDWARD GRAY Gent Aged About 52 years & Departed this life ye Last of June 1681" References * [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0282343253/maintourvacationA/ Winslow Memorial, Vol. 1] : Family Records of Winslows and Their Descendants in America, With the English Ancestry as Far as Known; Winslow Family(Classic Reprint) - Tracing family roots of the descendants these early Plymouth Colony settlers back to England. * Gray in Suffolk County, Massachusetts - first families history * Edward Gray- disambiguation * # 9304188